{"id":449732,"date":"2026-05-15T05:50:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T05:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/449732\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T05:50:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T05:50:19","slug":"i-got-hooked-on-motorbikes-in-ireland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/449732\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I got hooked on motorbikes in Ireland\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thanks to his globe-trotting two-wheeled exploits with pal Ewan McGregor on TV\u2019s long-running Long Way series, adventure-loving Charley Boorman is now as synonymous with motorbikes as his Oscar-nominated film director dad John Boorman is with movies.<\/p>\n

Thus, he\u2019s the ideal man to front a new documentary about the annual motorcycle road racing institution that is the North West 200 (NW200).<\/p>\n

Backed by racewear sponsor Zerofit and filmed throughout the 2026 event last week, Bigger… Better… Faster found Boorman (59) going behind the scenes to speak to competitors, fans and organisers about what makes this internationally renowned event so special.<\/p>\n

Set for release later in the year, the Luke Whatley-Bigg-directed film will centre on NW200 veteran Glenn Irwin (36) as the Carrickfergus-born Nitrous Competitions Racing Ducati and Zerofit rider returned to the Co Antrim road race after taking a year out and then sustaining a fractured pelvis following an \u2018off\u2019 at a circuit event in England.<\/p>\n

\"Belfast<\/a>\"Eurovision<\/a><\/p>\n

He got off to a great start, besting fellow Zerofit rider Dean Harrison (37) and Northern Ireland road racing royal Michael Dunlop (37), son of late legend Robert Dunlop, in the first Superbike race to claim a 12th victory at the event.<\/p>\n

Read more: NW 200: Glenn Irwin maintains dominance in Superbike class<\/a><\/p>\n

\"CharleyCharley Boorman has had a life-long love affair with motorbikes <\/p>\n

However, fast-rising young British Superbike Championship star, Storm Stacey (23), spoiled Glenn\u2019s comeback party with a win in the feature Superbike race – described as the NW200\u2019s \u2018blue riband event\u2019.<\/p>\n

Known for his signature top hat when not in the saddle, Staffordshire-born Bathams AJN Ducati and fellow Zerofit rider Storm was making his road racing debut complete with a jokey \u2018L-plate\u2019 on the back of his helmet.<\/p>\n

Having already beaten Michael Dunlop in the Superstock race, the youngster claimed his second victory in the final Superbike race when it was red-flagged after three laps due to an oil spill, with Storm in the lead and Glenn in third place.<\/p>\n

The behind-the-scenes view of such drama should make for a fascinating watch when Bigger… Better… Faster arrives on our screens. <\/p>\n

\"ZerofitZerofit riders (l-r) Storm Stacey, Glenn Irwin and Dean Harrison claimed the top three positions in the final Superbike race <\/p>\n

Read more: NW 200: Storm Stacey claims controversial Superbike and ends Irwin supremacy<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was amazing,\u201d enthuses London-born Charley, who spent a lot of his childhood growing up in Co Wicklow, of his first ever NW200 experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, it really was \u2018wow\u2019. I\u2019ve been to the Isle of Man TT and loads of motor GP and world superbikes stuff, and I know a lot of the riders.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were all saying, \u2018you\u2019ve got to come to the North West – it\u2019s just a super special place\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo when Zerofit asked me if I\u2019d like to do a documentary, I jumped at the chance. <\/p>\n

\u201cZerofit got me access to all areas, and the idea was to follow Glenn who had won it 11 times in a row.<\/p>\n

\"CarrickfergusCarrickfergus road racer Glenn Irwin (Tim Keeton\/Impact Images\/Tim Keeton\/Impact Images) <\/p>\n

Read more: NW 200: \u2018I might have to come back a bit more\u2019 – Debutant Storm Stacey blows them away in Superstock race<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cHe was the favourite: he missed out last year, and then he sort of had his comeback. So there was a lot of pressure on him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, while things didn\u2019t quite go to plan for the Carrick man, according to Charley, the 11-time winner remained quite philosophical about returning to the event at which he made his road racing name, knowing full well that he was the man to beat.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlenn spoke a lot about the expectations that he had, and that sort of \u2018target\u2019 he had on his back,\u201d he tells me.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe won his first race and just missed out on the second. But the lovely part of the story is that we were also talking to Storm about it being his first time there.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a great character, a super-fast rider and fantastic for the sport. He wears his heart on his sleeve, and he\u2019s a really well spoken guy – as is Glenn.<\/p>\n

\"4Storm Stacey claimed his first ever road racing victory at this year’s North West 200. PICTURE: Stephen Davison\/Pacemaker Press<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Glenn was saying, \u2018You know what? It\u2019s great – I\u2019ve had 12 [wins] on the bounce, what better way to be pipped to 13 than by a newcomer\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo he was happy just to get that 12th win, but he also said it\u2019s now made him want to go back even more now to get a 13th win next year.\u201d<\/p>\n

As part of the doc, the Sussex-based bike lover got the chance to join Glenn for a parade lap of the event\u2019s iconic \u2018triangle circuit\u2019, which utilises the streets and roads in and around Portrush.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the Wednesday, when they were doing all their practices, I was able to go out and follow Glenn around – so I had a really fantastic view of what it\u2019s like.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s only nine miles long, so it\u2019s not complicated to learn, but it has these two straights where they\u2019re going 212mph – and it\u2019s not a flat road.<\/p>\n

\"RodStorm Stacey leads the pack at Black Hill during the Superbike race at the NW200 on Saturday. PICTURE: Rod Neill\/Pacemaker Press (Rod Neill\/Rod Neill\/Pacemaker Press) <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s quite undulating and bumpy, and I could really feel that at the 80 or 90mph we were allowed to go.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlenn was saying to me, \u2018now imagine that at 212mph on a race bike with the stiffer suspension\u2019. And you just think, \u2018wow\u2019 – these guys are unbelievable.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd of course, they have all this stuff which they call \u2018furniture\u2019 to deal with. I asked Glenn, \u2018what do you mean, \u2018furniture\u2019? and he says, \u2018Well, you know, postboxes, pavements, telegraph poles, stone walls, houses, that sort of thing\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, the life-and-death stakes of motorcycle road racing were brought home in tragic fashion at this year\u2019s NW200 when Czechia racer Kamil Holan (48) was killed in a crash during Thursday morning\u2019s opening Superbike qualifying session.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that hit everybody really hard,\u201d says Charley.<\/p>\n

\"KamilKamil Holan, who died on Thursday at the North West 200 <\/p>\n

\u201cBut the racers all know the risks, and they all accept them. They all just get back out and carry on racing.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I don\u2019t know what it must be like for the for the families who are just sitting there watching and waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the course of filming, Charley visited the Joey Dunlop Memorial Gardens and the late Ballymoney bike legend\u2019s pub, Joey\u2019s Bar, where he spoke to Linda Dunlop about the multiple racing-related tragedies her family have endured over the years with the loss of Joey, his brother Robert and Robert\u2019s son, William, to the sport they loved so much.<\/p>\n

\u201cLinda never does interviews, but we managed to catch her on the Friday,\u201d reveals Charley.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a really good, busy day for her, and it was fantastic having a chat and listening to her about everything that went on and how they\u2019ve managed.<\/p>\n

\"CharleyCharley at Dunlop Memorial Gardens <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d actually forgotten Joey had owned and run the pub, so it was kind of lovely to be able to learn all about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for why motorbike lovers keep getting back in the saddle even after serious accidents – something Charley knows all about, having suffered serious injuries in the wake of several bike-related accidents himself – it seems that, despite the risks, there\u2019s just no happier place to be for those who have caught the biking bug.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in Ireland, in the Wicklow mountains,\u201d he tells me.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad was into horses, so I learned to ride at a very young age. Then my friend, Tommy Rochford from Annamoe, he had a Maico 400, which was really the bees knees in the late-1970s.<\/p>\n

\"CharleyCharley Boorman caught the motorcycle bug at an early age <\/p>\n

I grew up in the Wicklow mountains, and learned to ride horses. Then I convinced my friend, Tommy, to give me a go on his motorbike – I was instantly hooked<\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00a0Charley Boorman<\/p>\n

\u201cI convinced him to give me a go and I was just instantly hooked. I thought, \u2018My God, this is much better than horses – you can ride all day and there\u2019s no mucking out or feeding or grooming\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just love it, you know? You get on a bike and you\u2019re just watching the road rush underneath you, and all you can think about is being in that moment – everything else takes a back seat. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s the reason people love motorbikes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bigger… Better… Faster… will be released later this year. Follow Charley online at Instagram @charleyboorman<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"CharleyCharley Boorman will present the NW200 documentary Bigger… Better… Faster…